Stuck on the Road of Life
by KillerQueen312
Summary: Being reborn into the world of Naruto was not how I imagined to spend my afterlife. Though I knew that everything would end with a happy ending, I was worried if I would live long enough to see that happy ending. When your best friends are Itachi and Shisui, you have quite a lot of reasons to doubt. Rated T for language and violence.
1. Chapter 1 : (Re)Birth

**Stuck on the Road of Life**

 **(Re)Birth**

 **Disclaimer : I do not own Naruto, simple enough.**

 **I am a guy, writing a self-insert fanfic… I find that uncommon in the Naruto fandom, but what the hell!**

* * *

Dying was not the peaceful white light that many people preached about of. Oh no… dying was a major pain in the ass. Especially when the cause of your death was a drunk driver who suddenly came out of nowhere. Seriously, who the hell expected that to happen in the middle of the day? I was going home from school, walking on the sideways as usual, my fingers itching for the familiar sensation of mouse and keyboard. It was a typical hot cloudy day in the city. The road was quite empty, which was weird, considering it was the time when office workers go to lunch.

I put on my headphone and sat at the bus stop, listening to Green Day while waiting for the bus. I guess I must've put on the volume too loud because I didn't hear the people yelling at me to get out of the way. When I looked up from my phone, I saw a black car heading right towards me at top speed. People probably expects me to think about of my loved ones, the things I would be leaving behind, like say, my precious turtles… and families, of course. In the short span of a single second, I probably thought of those things, but the only thing that came out of my mouth was one word that most would say if people were in my situation.

"Shit!"

The next thing I knew was complete darkness. I couldn't see a damn thing. I couldn't even feel anything, so that probably confirmed my status of being dead. I wondered if I would go to Heaven or Hell. I hadn't done that many things in my life, since I was still an eighteen year old boy. I still had some more growing up to do and a kickass career I would probably have if I hadn't died. Mostly wishful thinking but at least I still have a dream. Or maybe there are no Heaven and Hell, just this endless void of darkness.

That would suck.

As a consolation though, I died in an accident and not in a martyr sort of way. Dying for a cause and then finding out you'll be stuck in an endless void after death would probably be like a stab in the back… with a bastard sword. I thought back on all the martyrs I knew from history books and pitied them if this was truly the case.

I thought back on my life before the car accident. I was an ordinary boy who was born in an ordinary household. I was a smart kid, though my brilliance was probably overshadowed by my laziness. But I could truly be smart when I put my back into something. I hadn't joined kindergarten because my family didn't have any money, so I stayed home for the most part of my early life. My brother and I taught ourselves on how to read in our attic. There were mountains of books there, either from my parents or my cousins' old books. We started with easy things, like Donald Duck comic books.

After my brother was whisked away by the diabolical claws of school, I started to read by myself, mostly books about zoology. I was really interested in animals and dinosaurs, especially dinosaurs. I now mentally laughed at the faces of my parents when they realized I actually memorized dozens of dinosaurs' names.

I really liked to draw. Drawing was a huge part of my life. My father first showed some of his old drawings and even demonstrated on how to draw a horse. Since then I've been drawing nearly every day. I first started with Popeye and other cartoon characters. As the years went by I got better at it too. I found that Masashi Kishimoto's drawing style suited me the most. It was realistic, but still stayed in the realm of manga.

I admit that I was a tad bit overweight, but I still did sports. I had been playing badminton since I was a little kid and it actually helped me with my reflexes. I was a quiet and polite person. It was only in the company of close friends that I truly open up and be the jokester that I truly am. Sometimes I like to joke in class, but I mostly kept my mouth shut. I usually put on a neutral expression when not dealing with people, which was quite a lot of time. People actually called me Flat-Face because of it. Not that I mind.

It felt like hours. I waited and waited and waited yet nothing happened. What? Was there an invisible queue where we line up and be judged to be sent to Heaven or Hell? I really hope not. Then suddenly, a bright light shone not far from where I was. It started out as a small light, no more than a small dot. Seconds went by and the light became bigger. I could hear voices from the other side. The voices spoke in a strange yet somewhat familiar language. The light made me squint. Then I got engulfed by the mysterious white light.

* * *

I saw many unfamiliar faces. Some of them were wearing white masks. They were holding me with their gloved hands and I felt wet and breathless. I was scared and I couldn't breathe. I did the only thing that seemed logical to me. I screamed. But it came out as a cry. A baby's cry. A thought dawned on me. I was experiencing my birth.

My rebirth.

I was being reincarnated. It only proceeded to make me cry even harder. A pair of arms came to hold me and a soothing voice reached my ears. I saw a beautiful woman with long brown hair. Her bangs stuck to her forehead, no doubt wet from all the sweat. I couldn't understand what she was saying. She was speaking in that strange language that oddly seemed familiar. I wanted to know more. I wanted to know what was going on. But my eyes betrayed me and I soon fell asleep.

* * *

I woke up in a crib. I held back a sniff when I remembered that I was reborn as a baby. The room was dark from what I caught by lying down was that the room was sparsely decorated. My parents probably didn't have enough money to buy decorations. The crib I was in seemed to be made from cheap wood and the blanket seemed to have been stitched back together after being ripped. Being reborn was the last thing that I expected to happen to me. Sure, some people in my previous life had talked about it but for it to happen to me? Preposterous!

Still, I have accepted that I had in fact died. So, I would just have to accept this new reality. Still, a new life. The idea alone was pretty crazy to me. I kept thinking on what country I was born in since I was obviously not in my country anymore or any English-speaking country as evident from the strange language I've been hearing. I hadn't been outside the house even once. So the moment my one of my parents brought me outside, I made sure to memorize my surroundings and determine where the hell I was. Morning was probably still hours away, so I decided that the best thing to do was to go to sleep again.

Morning came and I saw mother heading towards my crib. I still couldn't see very clearly, but I could see she was wearing some kind brown kimono. So I was born in Japan. But looking from her clothes, it was pretty traditional. Maybe she was a traditional person, I don't know. Anyway, where was my father?

She spoke some words that I honestly did not understand one bit. Then she spoke a single word that captured my attention. She kept repeating it while pointing at me. It dawned on me that she was speaking my name.

"Tora," she said. So my name was Tora. I liked it. Tiger. It wasn't as interesting as my old name, to be honest. But at least Tora was still a cool name. At least I wasn't named Yuki. I couldn't imagine sticking with such a girlish name.

She picked me up from the crib and carried me out of the room. I looked around the house as we went to the front door. The entire house was sparsely decorated which strengthen my suspicion of my family's financial condition. Then I saw the kitchen with had a whole lot of baking equipment. So my mother was a baker. Looking at the house, business must've been pretty bad recently. I didn't need to be a genius to figure that out. We went out of the front door and I saw my surroundings. I could see more clearly with my eyes now as they had adjusted quite well. The buildings were not tall and I could see that they seemed rather ancient to me. I turned my head around to where my mom was looking and saw a sight that made my brain stop working for a second.

On the mountain I could see three faces carved on the surface of it. I tried to convince myself that it was simply Mount Rushmore. But there were no Mount Rushmore in Japan, and Mount Rushmore does not have the faces of the First, Second and Third Hokage carved on it. I finally realized where I was. I was reborn into the Naruto world. I did the one thing any sane person would do when stuck in this kind of situation. I cried.

My mother patted my back in an attempt to calm me down. She was confused as to what had made me upset.

I just continued to cry.

* * *

 **I finally have the courage to write this. I was skeptical about writing self-insert fanfic at first as SI fanfics evidently have a nasty reputation among fanfics. But I'm now willing to give it a shot. Plus, I don't see a lot of male SI in the Naruto fandom. I will try to keep the characters from the manga as in character as possible. Having them acting out of character is the last thing I want. I'm sure it's the last thing you want too, right?**

 **Anyway, follow this story as there will be more coming. And would you kindly share your opinion of the prologue to me in the review section. That would be really helpful, especially if there were any flaw or anything I could improve. Thanks!**


	2. Chapter 2 : Growing Up

**Stuck on the Road of Life**

 **Growing Up**

 **Disclaimer : I do not own Naruto, simple enough.**

* * *

Growing up as a baby can be dumbed down into a single word. Boring. Utterly boring. I was kinda glad that I hadn't remember this the first time living. There was literally nothing I could do but lie down and wait for food to come from my mother. As a baker she would usually be busy in the kitchen, although business was usually sparse. That didn't stop her though. I noticed that our house wasn't that far from the gates of the Uchiha compound. Her costumers were usually female Uchihas, since the men probably had sticks up their asses. Typical Uchihas. She would usually come in to my room with her hands covered in flour and the smell of dough coming from her. I didn't mind, really. I rather liked the smell.

A year went by and I said my first word. I had decided to spell out the usual "Oka-san". No need to have her worried because my first word was 'Icha-Icha'. She couldn't stop beaming with pride. Not long after that I began to walk. I picked it up quite fast and in the matter of three days, I was already running out of the house and creating mischiefs, to my mother's annoyance.

I had a round face, as like any other children and brown mop of hair. It seemed that my hair growth was similar to that of my old life. I had blue eyes that I probably got from my deceased father, since my mother had brown eyes.

I also learned what my family name was. It was Mori, which means forest. It meant that my name could roughly be translated as 'Forest Tiger'. I loved my name even more. And my mother's was Miyako. Speaking of translations, I learned to pick up Japanese quite fast. Of course, anyone could do it as fast, especially if that was the only thing people spoke every hour of the day. I could understand most things my mother was speaking, but I couldn't speak back to her in full sentence yet.

It turned out that my father had been dead since before I was born. She wouldn't tell me what happened to him, but judging by the photo in the living room, where I could see a man wearing a green chunin flak vest, he probably died in the line of duty. I feel for her, but I couldn't mourn something that I never had in the first place.

Another year passed by and I insisted on my mother to teach me to read and write. At first she said that I was too young, but with some convincing from my part, she finally relented. Let me tell you this. Japanese was fricking hard. It wasn't as hard as Mandarin since the language doesn't incorporate tones into speaking and writing, but the amount of characters I had to memorize was staggering. The good thing was that since the writings were all characters instead of letters, it was really similar to drawing. I usually just memorized them by remembering what they looked like. My mother actually thought I had a fever when I compared the character 'Hito' to butt cheeks.

I also began to draw again when I turned three. Turns out, muscle memory doesn't transfer when you are reincarnated. My drawings were quite splotchy, but much, much better than the other two year olds I knew in the neighborhood. It looked like some kind of a mix between American cartoon and manga. Not that anyone here could spot the difference. Since my mother had taught me on writing and reading, I tried to find any kind of book throughout the house. I found some history books that I was certain I already knew the content of. I also found a familiar orange-covered book. My mother immediately grabbed that book away from me.

Reading things certainly helped me a lot with my grammar, but the books I found, not including that orange book, were all non-fiction historical books. I needed to find myself some fiction books. Hopefully good ones. I needed to get my imagination running. That and improve my language as well.

If the timing was accurate, judging by the amount of faces on the Hokage Monument, then Konoha should still be in war. It was probably how dad died. I also remembered that this was the time that everything went to hell and Obito started to go psycho. It was too late to change that, but maybe I could 'lend' and hand in some future events. Nothing groundbreaking, but probably enough for small changes. But to do that, I would need to be a ninja to make enough impact. I knew that my mother wouldn't like it one bit.

My suspicions were correct. She didn't like it. I think she was afraid that she would lose me like she lost dad. I knew I couldn't guarantee my safety, but if my calculations were correct, then by the time I joined the Academy, the war would be over already.

"Why would you want to join the Academy!?" she asked-yelled at me. I stood unflinchingly under her glare, determined not to give up.

"I want to be of use," I said. My mother shook her head, her hands holding her head as she looked like she was about to cry. I knew that this must've been hard for her. She probably thought that I wouldn't stand a chance among the clan children who had prior training. While I kept the pretense that I was still three years old, I couldn't act completely like one. The adults around me just assumed that I was a clever kid and quite mature for my age.

"You'll never be useless to me," said my mother. I shook my head at my mother's attempt to make me step down.

"Oka-san. There are some things I want to accomplish, people I wanted to protect, you among them. But I can't do it if I don't join the academy," I said. I knew that being a ninja wouldn't be glory and glamour through and through. Ninjas were basically glorified mercenary, assassin, spies. But I needed to be one to make enough changes, or at least survive the events that have yet transpired. In the manga, the civilian tended to be overlooked, but there were probably tons of civilian casualties not mentioned at all throughout the series. I was not taking the chance and let me or my mother fade away among pile of corpses.

"You're my son. I should be the one protecting you!" said my mother.

"I know that we're at war, mom," I interrupted her and she stilled. "It's just that, if the war ever reaches Konoha, I don't want to be sitting on my butt, quivering in fear. I want to fight. But fighting would be useless if I don't have the skills to back it up." My mother's expression softened, as if remembering something. Then she reached down and gave me a pat in the head. I could see the small amount of tears in the corners of her eyes.

"You really are your father's son," she said in a longing voice. "Okay." I beamed, but still held back the smile threatening to burst out.

"You can join the academy." I went forward and hugged her. "But only when you turn six." That was still a long way from now, but I could bear it. It would probably a good idea that I start training myself early.

* * *

Another year passed and I turned four. I was a bundle of energy and wouldn't stop playing outside with the neighbors' children. We usually play all sorts of ninja games, which were actually variations of tags. I also started on my endurance training whenever I went out of the house. Mostly running around to build up stamina. My ability to read and write was getting better as well. Not as good as adults, obviously, but much better than the other four year olds.

It was during a sunny Saturday morning that I first met Uchiha Itachi. Itachi was accompanying his mother, Mikoto when she arrived to buy some bread. My mother and Itachi's were chatting away. I never knew that mother was this close to the Uchihas. I stayed silent during their conversation and I looked at Itachi.

Itachi was a small kid, probably a year younger than me. He had a typical neutral expression most Uchiha wore on their faces. He didn't have the tear through he was so famous for yet. Noticing my stare, Itachi stared back at me, not speaking a word. It felt like minutes before I broke the silence and called my mom.

"Mom!" I called her.

"Yes?"

"Can I go and play with him?" I asked, pointing at Itachi. My mother looked at Mikoto for permission and Mikoto flashed me a smile.

"Go ahead. But don't go too far," said Mikoto. I immediately jump across the counter separating us, pulled his hand and went out of the shop. Itachi let out a small yelp as we sped out. I didn't really care where we were heading. Not for the first time in this new life, my childlike curiosity kicked in. I wanted to know Itachi better. He was now a real life person, not some drawings printed on paper. It was time I start to treat the characters as real people. In a way, I was glad that I met Itachi first. A quiet person was easier for me to befriend.

We stopped at a bench near the gate of the Uchiha Compound. I plopped myself on the bench. Itachi just followed me, not really sure what to do. I inspected him for a moment and I could feel him feeling uncomfortable under my gaze.

"Sorry if I'm making you uncomfortable," I said with a smile. Itachi tried to smile back, but it came out as a grimace.

"It's fine," replied Itachi.

"What's your name? I'm Tora. Mori Tora. I hope we can be friends!" I said with energy.

"I'm Itachi."

"You don't get out that much, do you?" I asked him. He shrugged, clearly a bit more comfortable after our brief introduction.

"I mostly stay in the Compound," answered Itachi.

"Do you have any other friends there?" I asked again.

"There aren't that many children my age. Though, I have a cousin I'm really close to." My mind instantly conjured up the image of Shisui. Of course, how could I forget about Shisui? The both of them were close friends since childhood. Maybe I can get another person into this bunch.

"One day, can you introduce me?" I asked. He let out a small smile, but a real smile nonetheless. It was nice to know that he was beginning to accept me. Now that I realized, my personality was probably not that different than Shisui. He probably dealt with this on a daily basis. Him being a kid probably made it even easier to soften up to him. I knew I wouldn't be able to even get close to him if I first met him as an adult.

"I think he would take an instant liking to you. You remind me a lot of him," said Itachi. Good to know that my memories of Shisui were accurate. Since he appeared very little in the manga and had a short OVA in a single game. My only problem would be to keep up with these guys once they join the academy. I would have to push myself further, but hey! You only live once, right?

Oh, wait…

* * *

 **Another chapter done. I was really pleased to check my E-mail and noticed quite a few people following and favoriting my story. You guys are great! After this chapter I probably won't update for about two-three days, five days at most. While I admit, I am quite good at writing, not having a beta means that I have to spell check the entire chapter by myself and make sure that I get the facts right.**

 **Anyway, follow, favorite and give me your opinion of this one, would you kindly?**


	3. Chapter 3 : Dreams of Peace

**Stuck on the Road of Life**

 **Dreams of Peace  
**

 **Disclaimer : I do not own Naruto, simple enough.**

 **Turns out my schedule isn't as busy as I thought. So that means faster updates! Yay!**

* * *

For the past five days, I had been spending even more time with Itachi. He was such a quiet kid and also quite smart for his age. He was shy, but wasn't above helping people or being kind. I honestly thought he was a bit too kind for his own good. But I admitted that it was one of his winning points.

The both of us spent time outside the compound since I was still a bit uncomfortable on going in. Itachi said that it was fine, but I still didn't want to go in. On the third day, Itachi admitted that he liked to spend time in the library reading history books. For once, I let him drag me to the library, with our parents' consent of course. While Itachi went through the many history books there, I looked in the fiction area. He asked me what I found so interesting about fiction, as he didn't find it very interesting. I told him that it's a good way to get away from reality for a little while. Itachi shrugged, still not really understanding what I meant.

After a few minutes of rummaging through quite a few books, I found a single title that caught my interest. It had a dusty blank brown cover and it looked like it was close to breaking apart. The cover and pages were worn by time, but still readable. On the dusty cover was the title, written in big writings so it was still easily readable despite its condition.

"The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi…" I muttered. Itachi looked over my shoulder, wondering what made me stop rummaging for books. We stared at it for a few seconds before he spoke up.

"I've never heard of it," said Itachi. I opened the book and examined the pages. The pages were still in a fairly good condition. I read the name of the author out loud for Itachi.

"Jiraiya of the Sannin," I said. Itachi's eyes widened slightly. Right beside the Sannin's name was his signature, the one I remembered seeing in the covers of Icha-Icha from the manga panels. "This book must be old," I continued.

"Do you want to borrow it?" ask Itachi. I looked at him and he shrugged his shoulders. I could see that Itachi was holding a few books about shinobi history. I usually got bored after reading history books. They were mostly the same. Itachi probably wanted to see histories from different point of views, hence the many books in his arms. It surprised me a bit that he could read such advanced books at such a young age. Then again, this was Itachi, after all.

"You think the librarian will just give me this book? I mean, it's not like anyone will ever read this," I said, waving the worn book in one of my hand. Itachi muttered a 'maybe'. Wordlessly, we went to the librarian. She was a middle aged woman with glasses. I'd seen her working here for as long as I could remember. She was a patient woman and rarely got mad at the library's occupants.

"Excuse me," I said, looking up at her desk. She stood up and looked at the both of us. I then lifted up the worn book in my hands, showing the title to her. She blinked confusedly, which meant she didn't recognize this book. The fact that even she didn't even know about this book really spoke of this book's reputation, or lack of.

"I noticed this book rotting away in one of the corners of the library," I continued. It wasn't really rotting away, but a little exaggeration wouldn't hurt anyone, right? Might as well play with her conscience a bit. "Seeing as no one will probably ever read this, can I have this book?"

The librarian looked a little unsure at my request. No one probably ever asked her this question, though it was clearly against the rule, I knew that she was the kind of person that wouldn't let a good book go to waste. At least that was what I observed from her since I first came here a year ago.

"That book belongs to the library, young man," she said, while adjusting her glasses. "You can't simply take a book you want back home."

"But nobody reads this book. The pages are worn, and the cover is so dusty. It is evident that it's not properly taken care of," I said while pointing at the book in my hand. Itachi stared at me, silently communicating with me with his gaze. It said, ' _What are you doing?_ '

"Maybe Hokage-sama should know," I continued, ignoring Itachi. "That the books in this library aren't properly taken care of?" The librarian flinched at that. I had hit a sore spot. I opened the book and showed her Jiraiya's signature.

"Especially since this book is his student's book!" I mentally cackled at the librarian's expression of fear and disbelief. I knew that Hiruzen probably wouldn't even care that much about a small matter such as this, especially since the book itself didn't sell very well at the time of its release, but this was too much fun. Itachi stared at me in silent shock, finally understanding what I was doing. Not that anyone could tell the difference in his expression, but I saw his form went rigid and his eyes widen slightly, if those were any indication.

"No! Don't tell Hokage-sama!" she yelled-whispered. Even at this point, she still remembered that she was in a library. "You can have the book! Just don't tell Hokage-sama!" I had a nagging suspicion that she probably had some more books broken under her watch and she stashed it somewhere as not to be found. But never mind that, our business was done here.

"Thanks, lady! You're so kind!" I exclaimed, before heading out of the library. I turned back to Itachi, forgetting that he hadn't borrowed the books in his arms yet. "I'll wait for you outside, Itachi!" the librarian proceeded to write down and stamped Itachi's books mechanically, as if in a trance. I mentally laughed at her.

* * *

"Did you really have to do that?" asked Itachi once we were outside. I kept the small book in my pocket, deciding that I should read it once I got home. It was about late in the afternoon, and it was probably time for us to go home anyway.

"What? No one's going to read this book anyway. I was saving it from a lifetime of neglect," I said, crossing my arms behind my head as we walked home. With my house being so close to the Uchiha Compound, we always went home in the same direction.

"You were pretty insistent in getting that book," continued Itachi. I caught the silent ' _Why?'_ in that statement.

"I just had a good feeling about this book. Like something's pulling me to it," Okay, I completely made that up on the spot, but I was really curious about this book. "And it's Jiraiya-sama. It should be interesting, right?" I flashed Itachi a smile. He sighed at my answer, but I could see the corners of his lips tugging upwards.

"Can you tell me about that book after you read it?" asked Itachi. The way he spoke was quite formal. It was kinda creepy, watching a three year old kid speak like that. Must be all the etiquette training he had…

"Sure, why not?" We went our separate ways at the Compound's gate. After Itachi left, I immediately went home, greeted my mom and went to my room to read the book. When I entered, I flopped down on my bed. It wasn't soft, but far from uncomfortable. The crib has been replaced by a small bed since I was two. I didn't have any toys, even though my mom once offered to buy some. She shrugged it off as one of my eccentricities. There was a window where I could see the road outside and a small desk under it, which I usually use to draw. There was also a desk lamp on it. There were little to no decorations in my room but I didn't really mind about that. There was a family photo between me and my mom hanging right beside the door. It was the exact same copy of the one that currently resided in our living room.

I sat down on my bed and then opened the book. I immediately started on the prologue, intending to finish the book in one go.

* * *

I woke up pretty late since I had decided to finish the book in a sitting. It was probably around seven or half past seven. Most kids probably wake up around this time, but I consider this to be pretty late, since I usually wake up at around five, regardless of when I actually slept. I was pretty sure that Itachi, being the clan heir, probably woke up around the same time as I do for training. It made me glad that I wasn't part of any clan.

I lifted my pillow and searched for the book. It wasn't there. I lifted my blanket and searched again. It wasn't there. I sighed, getting tired of this happening all over again. I had a bad habit of misplacing my things if I fall asleep while doing something. I jumped down from the bed. I winced when I landed and cursed my still short height. I looked under the bed. Sure enough, I could see the faint shape of the book. I hope the dust doesn't make its condition even worse.

I tried to reach under the bed for the book. But my arms were just too short. I wondered just how I slept that the book got under the bed. I scrunched up my face, trying to find a solution to reach that damn book. I didn't have any kind of pole or something long to reach it. Then I remembered that mom always kept a broom in the living room for easy access. I ran from my room to the living room and grabbed the broom which was leaning by the window.

Using the broom, I easily pulled the book from under the bed. I smiled triumphantly and examined the broom. The brush end of the broom was caked in dust and I scrunched up my nose, trying not to breathe in any of the dust. Not having any other purpose for it, I placed the broom on my shoulder and proceeded to walk out of the room, book in hand.

Only to walk right into Itachi.

The both of us yelled quite loudly as my foot tangled with one of his. The broom I was holding slipped from my grip and fell right on top of Itachi's face. The both of us coughed, trying to spit out the offending dust from our lungs. Itachi's coughs were worse though, since he just had a faceplant with a broom.

"What ***cough*** are you ***cough*** doing here?" I asked Itachi between coughs.

"Your mom ***cough*** said that you're ***cough*** still in ***cough*** your room. I ***cough*** came to fetch you. She let me in," answered Itachi while still coughing. I tried to answer with an 'Oh', but it came out as another cough instead.

We stood up and dusted our clothes. I leaned the broom against the wall, a little away from where we were standing, not wanting another repeat of the same accident. I picked up my book which fell on the floor when Itachi and I collided.

"You're pretty early, Itachi," I asked him, still dusting off my clothes. Itachi has just finished dusting his face which now looked as clean as ever.

"I thought you said you always wake up early, Tora-san. I figured I could take you to my cousin." I remembered telling Itachi that. Unfortunately, today wasn't one of those days. My mind was still occupied with the book in my hand. Itachi eyed the book with a little curiosity.

"And maybe you can share what you read to me," continued Itachi. Oh yes, I did promise him that. My mom ran down the hall, hands covered in flour. Her eyes were searching for any kind of trouble. We stared at her for a few seconds before she broke the silence.

"Did I just hear yelling!?" she asked loudly. Itachi looked at me, waiting for me to solve this. I narrowed my eyes at him. Itachi did not respond.

"Nothing serious, Oka-san. I just walked into Itachi here," I said, gesturing at Itachi. Mom eyed the broom leaning innocently behind us.

"Didn't I tell you not to play with the broom?" she asked with a sweet voice. I scratched my cheek, pretending to be innocent. While it may have worked on other people, I knew that mom was immune to my acting. She just had a way of seeing through me.

"It took a liking to me, so it followed me," I answered. Itachi stared at me as if I had brain damage. Maybe the reincarnation mumbo jumbo actually did damage my brain. Go figure.

My mom looked at the both of us and sighed quietly. I did say that she could see through me. That meant she even understood the underlying meaning of what I just said. Seeing as there was nothing wrong, she told us off and went back to her work.

I told Itachi to wait in the living room while I brushed my teeth and washed my face. It didn't take long, perhaps around three to five minutes. After I was done, I bid my mom farewell. Mom answered back from the kitchen. Itachi and I went out of my house and walked to the direction of the compound. I realized that to meet Shisui, I had to enter the compound. Itachi noticed my discomfort.

"It's fine, right? Entering the compound?" Itachi asked me, a little unsure. I managed a smile and assured him that it was fine. I wasn't afraid that the clan wouldn't accept me. I could care less about that. What made me uneasy was that the most memorable moment of the Uchiha Compound from the manga was the Uchiha Massacre. I could just see the corpses lining the road, all slain by Itachi. I shuddered at the thought the possibility of having to see that for real. Unfortunately, Itachi noticed me shuddering.

"If you're feeling under the weather, we can do this tomorrow," said Itachi. I assured him that it was fine. He was such a worrywart, like a mother.

We entered the compound. As we passed by the front gate, I could see a few Uchihas lounging near it. Some of them were wearing the Millitary Police uniform or the usual Jounin flak vest. A few stared at me, but soon averted their gaze when they realized that Itachi was accompanying me. Paranoid bastards. I wondered if they were already planning about the coup even now.

"Say, Tora-san," Itachi said. I glanced at him.

"What is it?" I asked. Itachi glanced back at the direction of the gate. I looked back, confused as to what he was glancing at.

"I don't mean to be rude, but…"

"What?" I asked again. I was getting a bit impatient.

"Your mother… she runs a bakery right?" asked Itachi. I raised an eyebrow. It should be pretty obvious to anyone who passed my house. It was small, yes, but the bakery was hardly obscure. I simply nodded at Itachi's question.

"Well, you see… we already have our own bakery in the compound. So, I wonder as to why your mother opened a bakery so close to the compound," said Itachi. I raised both my eyebrows. That was quite a lot of words for Itachi. This must have nagged him for quite a while if he would speak in so many words. Come to think of it, why did mom open her bakery there? She probably knew about the bakery inside the compound. The only regular customers I have seen were the occasional female Uchihas, and they don't come often. Though, Mikoto had been coming to our place a few times already in the last few days.

"You know… I've no idea. I never really thought about it, actually. Maybe I'll ask my mom later," I mused loudly. Itachi silently nodded. That was more like him. We continued to walk for a while before I spoke again.

"Hey, you haven't told me your cousin's name," I said, arms crossed behind my head as we walked. I already knew, of course. But really, why would I tell anyone that?

"His name is Shisui," answered Itachi.

"You said I act a lot like him." Itachi let out a chuckle. That was rare.

"Yes. I could've sworn that you might be related to him. He never stops talking," said Itachi.

"I don't talk all the time," I grumbled. I don't. Seriously.

"No, you don't. But when you start, it's hard for you to stop." That was partly true. I do know when to hold my mouth, thank you.

"Anyway, about that book-

"I think we can talk about it with Shisui. I'm sure he'll be interested as well," Itachi interrupted me. I muttered a 'Fine', silently holding the book which I brought in my pocket. I remembered reading it the night before. It had a solid plot, but full of cliché moments. Most of the action scenes were predictable and some of the dialogues were downright corny. Considering this was Jiraiya's first book, it wasn't a surprise. But considering his later books, this one probably had better plot, in my opinion. At least this book was trying to get a message across to the readers.

I thought about it. Peace. Can such a peace be attained? Humans were a selfish creature. History has proven that fact, both in my old world and this world. Wars happened, caused by the desire for power, greed, revenge and other much pettier reasons. Such an idealized version of this world seemed out of reach.

I knew that the ending of the manga was quite a happy ending. The Shinobi Alliance went on, the characters were making babies with each other, Naruto became the Hokage, Sasuke broke the Curse of Hatred, so on and so on. But how long would that last? I remembered how Madara viewed the world. His reasons, to me, were valid.

Valid? Yes.

Justified? No.

No one should ever have that much power. A power so big that you could just decide to play God. He wanted peace that would last an eternity. It was a noble reason, but there was a limit just how much dreams and reality can be mixed.

To make your dream a reality? Sure.

To make your dream become your reality? It was sad.

I glanced at Itachi. The sacrifices he would make flashed before my eyes. A pacifist by nature, he wanted peace. And yet, to attain that peace he would willingly destroy himself. His life, his reputation, his family, his own well being. Right now, Itachi was no more than an innocent three year old. I knew I could never stop Itachi from growing up. It was beyond my power. I may not even be able to change the things that would happen in the future. I'm just one guy. And honestly, my biggest concern was surviving through all those events, not changing them.

The least that this 'One guy' could do was to be there for Itachi. And maybe I wouldn't even be able to do that. But I can at least try.

* * *

 **That was a more serious chapter, at least towards the end. I did say that updates would be a bit faster. Expect a new chapter in the next few days.**

 **Anyway, have any of you seen the latest Naruto Gaiden? Suigetsu is screwed, don't you say? The ending was rather abrupt, but at least it wraps things up. I'm also planning to make the chapters longer for this story.**

 **Replies to Reviews :**

 **CorpulentCatfish : Thanks. So far, I always had trouble committing to a story, but I think I might be able to do so with this one.**

 **I hope I won't drop this. That's not exactly oozing with confidence, is it? Anyway, I plan to take this a little slow, so interactions with Naruto might come a bit later. And yes, we need more boys in the fandom!**

 **And it's kinda early, but I would like some suggestion about pairings. Should there be one or not? I have some ideas in mind, but it would be best to consider my options first. If any of you have some suggestion, you can PM me if you want.**

 **Follow, favorite and review, guys. I'll see you later.**


	4. Chapter 4 : Three's a Crowd, They Say

**Stuck on the Road of Life**

 **Three's a Crowd, They Say**

 **Disclaimer : I do not own Naruto, Kishimoto does. I'm just playing in his sandbox…**

* * *

Uchiha Shisui was exactly like I expected him to be; loud, excitable, energetic and a whole lot of fun to be with. Unlike our dear friend Itachi, and the majority of the Uchiha clan, Uchiha Shisui was full of smiles, and it was highly infectious. Shisui was the same age as I was, a year older than Itachi. Itachi was right about him unable to keep his mouth shut when talking. I didn't really mind, and I suspected that Itachi didn't mind either.

Shisui's parents were never shown or explained in the manga. When I arrived with Itachi at Shisui's home, I saw that he lived in a small but cozy house that looked like it would fit a family. Shisui greeted us both at the entrance of his house. He was so excited to see me as he didn't have that many friends outside the compound, or so Itachi said.

"Do you live here alone?" I asked Shisui once we entered his house. Shisui laughed and playfully slapped my shoulder. I winced slightly at the sudden slap.

"No. My dad is a shinobi. He got deployed to the front lines of the war, or so he said," he shrugged. So Shisui's dad was a shinobi who was currently fighting in the war. I wondered if the war was the reason for his father's absence.

"I don't have a mother. Dad said she died during my birth, some complications," he shrugged.

"Sorry," I muttered. Shisui gave me another smile, and I couldn't help but smile a bit.

"Don't worry about it," he said, waving his hand-dismissing what I just said. "So, you live just outside the compound?" asked Shisui. I answered the barrage of questions that came from Shisui. Most of them were the usual questions one would ask when getting to know someone. Name, age, and so on. Itachi watched us silently, seemingly amused.

The three of us sat in the dining room. As we sat on the tatami mat, Shisui brought some crackers and put them on the kotatsu. The three of us ate some crackers before Shisui continued with the questions (interrogation).

"So, how did you meet Itachi?" asked Shisui.

"He was accompanying his mother. They were buying some things from mine. I dragged him out of the shop and introduced myself," I answered. Shisui let out a hearty laugh.

"Yes! You have to drag Itachi anywhere. He's too shy to introduce himself to new people. How do you think I even know him?" said Shisui while laughing. I found myself laughing as well.

"I'm right here…" Itachi deadpanned. Though he was clearly amused, if the twitch of his lips were any indication.

Since it was still fairly early in the morning, Shisui brought us to the training ground he regularly uses. It was a pretty big clearing with trees covering from all sides. In the middle of the clearing, I could see some scarecrows used for target practice. The doll had a few stab marks from both kunai and shuriken and a piece of wood nailed on its torso. The piece of wood had a red dot at the center of it. Just as we arrived, Shisui motioned towards Itachi.

"Hey, Itachi! How's your training going? I can give you a few pointers if you want," said Shisui, giving Itachi a pat on the back. Itachi shrugged off the pat on his back.

"I'm progressing nicely. Maybe you should talk to Tora instead. I remember him saying that he wants to join the academy." I blinked, not expecting that from Itachi. Shisui smiled and walked towards me.

"You want to join the academy? You can train with us if you want!" said Shisui excitedly. Well, at this point, I couldn't really refuse, could I? And besides, I really needed the edge over the other students if I want to graduate early like Itachi and Shisui would.

"Sure," I shrugged sheepishly. "Though, I am just starting. I should start with the basics first." Shisui nodded, clearly agreeing with my statement.

"Itachi and I have only recently started training as well. We haven't gotten to chakra control, but I've been practicing shurikenjutsu for quite a while. Longer than Itachi has. I can start helping you now," said Shisui, giving me a lighthearted wink.

"That's great!" I beamed at his generosity. Starting with shuriken was probably a good idea. It doesn't require chakra to perform, just precision, timing and lots of practice.

Shisui showed me the basics on how to throw a shuriken. I noted all his explanations in my mind. Despite still being a four year old kid, Shisui was surprisingly a good teacher. He used phrases that were easy to understand and answered my questions clearly if I didn't understand something. Not that I had many questions. I absorbed all this new information like a sponge. I could easily understand the theory. Now, the only thing I needed to do was to practice doing it for real. Looking at Shisui's results, I felt a small blow to my self-esteem. All of his shuriken had hit the targets right in the center.

I bended my arm just as Shisu had shown me. I stared at my target, an old beaten scarecrow. It was harmless as any other inanimate object. I took a deep breath, remembering the motions on how to throw a shuriken. Behind me, both Itachi and Shisui waited with bated breath, anxious to see on how I would do. I honestly didn't expect much since this was my first time. I took another breath and threw.

Bend the arm; swing the arm around ninety degree and flick the wrist when you throw. It was how I remembered Shisui's movements. His movements were so precise. I was sure that mine probably looked amateurish in comparison. As I threw the weapon, I saw it sailed through the air, going straight for the target. The moment I saw its trajectory, I knew that it wouldn't hit the center.

A second passed, and I saw that the shuriken I had thrown had embedded itself on the wood just below the intended target, which was the red dot on the center of the piece of wood. The red dot was unscathed, as if mocking me for failing to hit it. I didn't notice Shisui running towards me until he excitedly patted (slapped) my back. As a result I sluggishly fell forward with a loud 'Umph'. Shisui sheepishly rubbed the back of his head before pulling me up. I dusted my shirt and noticed that he and Itachi were smiling at me.

"What?" I asked them, genuinely confused. Itachi came up to the both of us, still smiling. He pointed at the target. I looked at it. It was still as I remembered it. I had failed to hit the center. The shuriken fell below the red dot.

"That," he said, pointing at the target. "Was pretty impressive." I blinked in surprise. Shisui decided to voice his thoughts as well.

"It was even better than my first try! You're a natural! If you hadn't told me this was your first try, I would've thought you had trained already!" Shisui exclaimed. I hadn't expected this, to be honest. "A few more practice, and you can probably hit the center with ease!" continued Shisui.

"But I didn't hit the center…" I scratched my head. Shisui chuckled.

"At least you managed to hit part of the target. The first time I tried to throw a shuriken, it didn't even hit the scarecrow," said Shisui. Itachi gave me few more shurikens. I looked at him questioningly.

"Try again. You may be a natural at it, or it could be a fluke." I nodded, understanding the purpose, although a bit offended at his wordings. The thought that it might be the former would be shocking and exciting. Though, if it was the latter I wouldn't be surprised.

I took my stance again and threw one shuriken after another. This time, I was slightly less nervous. I watched in silent shock as most the shuriken I threw lodged themselves on the piece of wood nailed on the poor scarecrow. One shuriken I threw slashed the scarecrow's arm, lodging itself on the tree behind it, while the last shuriken stabbed the spot where the scarecrow's eyes should be. It was off target, but in real life that would have been an instant kill, or at the very least incapacitate.

The three of us spent a few more hours perfecting my throw, which Shisui was more than happy to help me with. Itachi and Shisui could do perfect throws, despite their age. And all their shuriken had hit their respective target. Looking at mine, some were a bit off, but most had actually hit around the center. I was surprised. I didn't remember my throwing skills to be this good in the previous life. To be honest, I felt a bit weirded out.

Before we knew it, the sun had risen above our heads. Being called the Land of Fire, it was pretty hot. But it was certainly not as hot as I was used to in my previous life. Tropical countries, especially one like Indonesia were very hot during the dry season, after all. I didn't really mind the heat, actually. I had spent a lot of time outside the house in the last few months that I was pretty much immune to it. I actually got a pretty nice tan because of it.

"Hey, want to get some dango?" asked Shisui. I never had dango. Itachi seemed to brighten at the thought of the sweet snack. Didn't Kishimoto mention Itachi having a sweet tooth?

"I've never had dango, before," I said to Shisui. He smiled at me, showing his toothy grin.

"Well, we'll take you to our compound's dango shop!" said Shisui. He grabbed my hand and dragged me along. Itachi quietly followed us from behind. "You'll love it!" Shisui said.

When we arrived at the shop, I immediately sat beside Itachi. Shisui called the lady who ran the shop for some dango. She eyed me for a short moment before giving us our orders. I've seen dango before, but I never ate them. It was made of rice, so maybe it tastes like mochi? I looked at the dango the lady gave us. There were six sticks with four small balls skewered on each stick. Some kind of sweet soy sauce was poured onto them. I took a stick and put one in my mouth. The sweet flavor assaulted my taste buds. The taste was a little overbearing at first, but as the seconds went by, I got used to it.

"How is it?" Shisui asked me. Itachi was chewing his dango, but I could see that he was looking at me too. I chewed a bit more before swallowing.

"It's good," I said. "A little different than what I'm used to, is all." I took another bite of the sweet rice dumpling and chewed. Shisui seemed to shine with relief when took another bite. Itachi being Itachi, ate in silence while watching the two of us. The three of us chatted about little things and whatnot. Well, me and Shisui, mostly. Itachi gave his opinions every now and then by nodding or giving a small hum of approval. Throughout all that, Itachi didn't utter a single word, until Shisui asked Itachi about the academy.

"So, when are you planning on entering?" asked Shisui. Itachi looked to the side for a moment, contemplating his answer.

"The average age for enrollment is five, so I'll probably join at that age," answered Itachi. I decided to enter the conversation and voice my thoughts over my mom's decision.

"My mom won't let me join until I'm six," I sighed. Shisui was silent for a moment before suddenly, he smiled and let out a grin.

"If I join at six as well, we'll all be in the same year!" he exclaimed. Now that I thought about it, Shisui was right. If I join the academy at the age of six, I would be in the same class as Itachi, since the academy doesn't seem to separate the academy year by age.

"Why six, though?" Itachi asked me. "Can't you just join when you're five? If you want it like that, you have to wait at least two years." I rubbed the back of my head and thought about it. To me, it just seemed that mom was reluctant to let me go, especially when I wanted to enter the line of job that got her husband killed in the first place. And I really didn't want to upset her.

"I'm sure she has her reasons," I shrugged. It wasn't really my place to tell them anything about it, to be honest. Shisui looked like he wanted to say something else, but stopped himself before any word could come out.

"Didn't you bring that book you took from the library?" asked Itachi in an attempt to steer the conversation away from the subject.

"Borrowed, you mean?" asked Shisui, a little confused. Itachi shook his head, which prompted Shisui to put on a bemused expression. He turned his head at me with both eyebrows raised.

"How did you even do that?" Shisui asked while grinning. "I don't often go to the library, but I'm pretty sure you can't do that!" he exclaimed. I shrugged, trying to brush it off as something normal. When I thought back about it, what I did wasn't normal. Not the least bit normal. No normal four year old would blackmail a librarian into giving a book away.

"She was being generous," I shrugged again.

"He blackmailed her," Itachi cut in.

"Hey!"

Yep. This seemed to be the start of a great friendship. I just feel it in my bones.

* * *

I walked back home from the compound. Itachi had been called by his mother to come home. I walked Shisui back to his house before parting ways with him. I found it easy to talk with him. Sure, befriending somebody like Itachi was interesting, but finding someone so similar to me in personality was a nice addition for my social circle. Shisui had ended up asking me so much about the 'Library Incident' as we called it, that the three of us actually forgot about the book I brought.

I approached my home as the sun was beginning to set. The door was locked. This wasn't unusual. Sometimes, mom would run out on a certain ingredient and she would have to go on a late grocery shopping. A few shops were still open this late in the evening. I would've told her to consider on hiring someone, but I knew that we were making just enough money to pay the monthly bills, the ingredients for bread, and food for ourselves. This was one of the reasons that I wanted to be a shinobi. Dangerous it might be. But from what I read, the job pays well. We needed it. Mom needed it. She was too proud to be ensnared in debts. By splitting the earnings I would make as a shinobi, I could alleviate her burdens. And maybe, as I go through the ranks, she could finally afford an assistant.

But I knew that I couldn't just sit on my ass, reading books. Itachi and Shisui had started training early. Somehow, I needed to catch up. I barely had money to buy any equipment, so for now; I just had to focus on endurance and stamina. And maybe some chakra control. Those would do for now. If I wasn't mistaken, the library had some books about chakra control and other things we would learn in the academy besides history. I needed to freshen up my geography, even though I knew that I would hate it. I always hated geography, but that would really help me in the academy and in the field.

I pulled out a spare set of keys from my pocket, and unlocked the front door with it. Mom trusted me enough to have a spare set. I entered the house and flicked the light on. The lights went on in a blink and I locked the door behind me. It wasn't that late, but I figured a quick shower wouldn't hurt anyone. Mom came home during my shower. She told me to wait while she prepared dinner. After a while, I went to the kitchen and hopped onto the chair and looked at the dish served on the small table for two. It was the usual rice, grilled fish and miso soup. I hid my grimace, but I think mom caught my expression either way. It's not that I hated it, but this was literally the only thing we had eaten for dinner for the last few weeks. Mom sat down in front of me, right before her own dinner, which was exactly the same as mine.

"Itadakimasu," both of us said before picking up our chopsticks.

We ate in silence. It wasn't an uncomfortable one, but I knew that she was going to ask me about my day sooner or later.

"How's your day?" she asked. I set my chopsticks down, already finished with my meal while mom was merely halfway done with hers. Sometimes she looked pretty amazed at how fast I eat.

"I made another friend today," I said.

"Really? Who is it?" mom asked, becoming interested. I liked to play outside with other kids, but none of them were really close friends with me. The moment I got along really well with Itachi, mom immediately approved of our friendship. Mikoto didn't seem to mind either.

"Itachi's cousin, Uchiha Shisui," I replied.

"Another Uchiha, huh?" she muttered. "You seem to be getting along with children of that clan, Tora." I blinked. Was that bad?

"Is that bad?" I asked, mirroring my thoughts. She shook her head and smiled.

"No. Not at all. It's just surprising. The Uchiha Clan aren't really the most open clan in the village. For you to befriend two members of the clan in less than a week. That's remarkable." Really? I didn't know that it was that big of a deal. When I thought about it, with a clan as reclusive as the Uchiha it was no surprise, actually. For me, a no-name civilian child to gain the friendship of the clan heir, was quite an accomplishment.

"They taught me on how to use shuriken and kunai. Shisui is a really good teacher!" I said. Mom nodded.

"How old is he?" she asked.

"The same as me," I answered. She blinked in surprise.

"Four? He must be smart." I hummed in agreement. We talked about the rest of my day, how I first tried dango, finding out about Itachi's addiction to the sweet dish and the Uchiha Compound. She was a little surprised that I was able to freely enter just like that. But considering I was just a kid, they probably didn't see the harm in it. I was just going to tell her about Shisu's father, but stopped myself. I didn't want to kill the conversation and ruin the mood.

"If you want to train with throwing shuriken and kunai, I can buy you a training set," mom suddenly said. I immediately shook my head, waving my hands in front of me.

"You don't have to, mom. I can just borrow Itachi's when we get together again," I said. She adamantly shook her head and gave me a small smile.

"It's fine. You want to become a shinobi, don't you? Might as well start early. You don't want to be left behind by Itachi, right? For that, you have to work had!" she said, pumping her fist upward in the motion of hard work. I blinked a few times, before letting out a sigh. I knew she wouldn't back down. While this would be another dent in our savings, it would also be another incentive for me to finish the academy early. Mirroring her movements, I pumped my fist in an upward motion.

"Okay!"

* * *

 **That's another chapter. I noticed that I tend to switch between mom and Oka-san. From this chapter onwards, I will be using "Mom". It's much simpler.**

 **I notice that most SI fanfics or even most Naruto fanfics rarely addressed the state of the civilians' economic standing. Surely, not all of them were loaded, or have stable business like Teuchi and his daughter. This is something I'm trying to tackle here.**

 **And sorry for the long update. I was doing research (Not that kind) on Itachi's disease. And add to the fact that with my family is celebrating Lebaran, I didn't have much time in the first place. School's starting in a week or so. Which means that updates may get longer in between.**

 **That's it for today, favorite, follow and review, guys and gals! Next chapter may get longer.**


	5. Chapter 5 : Promises

**Stuck on the Road of Life**

 **Promises**

 **Disclaimer : I do not own Naruto, Kishimoto does. I'm just playing with his story…**

* * *

True to her words, mom got me a shuriken and kunai training set. It wasn't much, but enough for my needs. I remembered a training ground not far from here. What was it? Training Ground Ten? Six? I couldn't remember. But I remembered seeing a few Genin training there. I hoped they wouldn't mind sharing. I hadn't seen Itachi for a while now. He should be training with his father. Well if that was the case, then I couldn't afford to lag behind.

I ran to the direction of training ground after eating a quick breakfast. Mom didn't bother asking where I was going. She knew that I was eager to try out the equipment set she had given me. I passed many shops and stalls before seeing the gates to the training ground getting closer. Once I arrived in front of it, I took a few deep breaths. Running all the way here didn't tire me as much as it used to. Pleased with my slow, but existent progress, I looked up at the sign above the gate.

It was a simple sign. Just a wooden post nailed on top of the gate with black ink used to write on it. It read, "Training Ground Eight". I opened the gate and ran inside. Slowing myself, I walked along the path to the training ground. I could see a large field with a few tall grasses around the edges of the land. I wasn't expecting anything special. Most training grounds were the same save for a few exceptions like the 44th training ground and 0th training ground which were used for special purposes. Chunin Exams for the former, and a wildlife preserve for the latter.

I certainly didn't expect a teenager with green jumpsuit to walk out of the field on his hands. I knew from the moment I saw that green suit and weird bowl haircut that I was looking at the figure of Might Guy, the Green Beast of Konoha. He stayed surprisingly (almost) silent as he walked on his hands, muttering numbers. I suspected that he targeted his goal to be around one thousand steps around the village.

I remembered the strength he would have in the future; a force so powerful that could go toe to toe with Six Path Madara. Fighting across the battlefield and kicking major ass even when he was already tired from fighting Kisame. I admired him, strength-wise, but I knew that I would just get myself killed if I adopt his training regime. And I honestly would rather kill myself if I were forced to wear that horrendous jumpsuit for the rest of my life.

He didn't seem to notice me, too engrossed in his training. I silently walked passed him, pulling out my favored novel from my pocket, and a pouch filled with training equipment in the other hand. Guy stilled for a second and turned back, still on his hands.

"YOUNG MAN!" he called me. I flinched, cursing my luck. I should've known that he would sense me. I turned around, and acknowledged him with a neutral expression.

"ARE YOU HERE TO TRAIN, MY YOUTHFUL FRIEND!?" he yelled. God, my ears hurt. I really wished he would stop talking in capital letters, but I knew that would be the day Tsunade stopped her drinking habit completely, or the day Jiraiya stopped becoming a pervert. Which basically meant the chance of that ever happening in the near future was little to none. I gave him a silent nod, not wanting to talk, afraid that it would just make him more inclined to stay. His encouragement, while nice, wasn't what I needed. All his yelling would just make me break concentration.

"GOOD LUCK ON YOUR WAY TO GREATNESS, MY FRIEND!" he yelled again, before sauntering off on his hands. I let out a long sigh, glad that he was out of the way. I didn't have anything against the guy, but he was just plain annoying.

After arriving in the middle of the training ground, I set my pouch down and pulled out my new training set. They were a bit blunt, as expected. But I knew that the best ninja could easily kill their target even with a blunt kunai. If I were to keep up with Itachi and Shisui, that meant I couldn't afford to slack off.

I turned around, facing the target, and in a single move, threw the training kunai I was holding. It lodged itself on the target, but not exactly on the center. I pulled a few shuriken and threw them one by one as fast as I could. Some had hit the center, but most strayed off.

From my experience yesterday, I knew that I was already good enough on throwing shuriken one by one, but I needed to up the stakes. Natural or no, I needed to train.

And so, until it was lunch time, I practiced on throwing shuriken and kunai a bit more before deciding to try and throw them while moving. As expected, I didn't even manage to hit a single target. I wasn't surprised, actually. Being natural didn't mean that I was a miracle worker.

I continued to try throwing projectiles while on the move. When a single shuriken had hit the target, I immediately went to check it. It wasn't perfect, as the shuriken only hit the edge of the target, but it was something. As I kept trying to hit the target, I noticed that some of them had started to veer into the right direction. I couldn't help but let out a small smile. I went home when the sun had been right above me.

* * *

I opened the door to my house as mom just finished a transaction with a customer. As she looked at me, mom wrinkled her face in disgust. I smell. I was aware of that. I was pretty sure a nin dog would probably pass out from my odor alone.

"You smell," she said. "Go take a shower, then you can cook lunch." I complied and took a quick shower.

Sometimes, when mom was too busy or tired, she would have me cook lunch for the both of us. It was actually my idea. When she found out I was quite good at cooking, she agreed to the arrangemen, albeit a bit relucantly. I didn't mind. I liked to experiment with my cooking, to my mother's delight. Although she was rather conflicted at whether she should be proud or scared that I was pretty skilled with a knife. The joys of being a twenty-one year old stuck in a five year old body.

I pondered on what to cook. I looked inside the refrigerator. We still had a few eggs left. I also noticed a few slices of chicken breast. I didn't really liked chicken. Make me choose between chicken and fish and I'd choose fish over chicken any day. Chicken had always been mom's favorite, not mine. It looked like she had bought some during yesterday's late grocery run. We still had leftover rice from breakfast and there was a jar of peanut butter sitting innocently on the small dining table. I scratched my head, remembering an old recipe I had accidentally come up with during a school competition in my old life. Maybe mom would like something different for a change. I pulled a chair and positioned it before the stove so that I could reach the top easier.

I pulled out two eggs, two slices of chicken breast, two small bowls and a bottle of soy sauce. I cleaned the chicken before cutting each slice to two and showered them with salt and a bit of pepper. I pulled out a frying pan, poured a little oil and put it on the stove before turning it on. I waited until it was hot enough before putting the chicken slices on it. I watched as the chicken sizzles in the hot oil. When I saw that the chicken had turned white enough, I pulled them out.

Moving away, I washed my hand and opened the jar of peanut butter. I took a few scoops and dumped them into the bowl in front of me. I poured a cup of water and some soy sauce. Absentmindedly, I took a spoon and stirred them together. I really liked cooking. Like reading, it was one of my ways to pass the time. There was a clear objective; to make an edible meal. It was simple, unlike life. No grey morality, no black and white morality either. Just me in the kitchen, minding my own business. Sometimes, it felt like a game to me. And the look my mother has on her face when she eats my cooking was always a plus.

After stirring for a while, I put the bowl down and brought the half cooked chicken slices. Using a spoon, I smeared the stirred peanut butter-soy sauce combination onto them. I turned on the stove again and let the little oil on it heat up again. I looked at the clock hanging near the door. About half an hour had passed since I first started and mom hadn't checked up on me during that time, as far as I know. She seemed busier than usual, which was weird. She was never that busy to begin with, to be honest. Was there any special occasion? I didn't remember any special event happening today. I glanced at the calendar on the wall. Today was a Thursday if I wasn't mistaken. I used the calendar to count the amount of days that had already passed this month.

Today was 17th of July.

There wasn't anything written on the calendar on that exact date. I shrugged it off. I could just ask mom later during lunch. I picked up the chicken slices with a spoon and gingerly put them on the hot oil. The chicken immediately sizzled. Pan fried chicken was something I was familiar with. Mom had cooked me this particular cooking a few times. Although the peanut butter sauce was entirely my idea.

After a while I pulled them out from the hot pan and searched for two small plates beneath the washing sink. After I found a pair, I put two slices of chicken on each of them. With that done, I proceeded to cook the eggs. They were fairly simple and not as messy. I just stirred the both of them and made an omelet which I later sliced in half. We still had some leftover rice from this morning, so I didn't need to cook any.

With the cooking done, I washed my hands, prepared a pair of bowls and filled them with rice. I pulled two sets of chopsticks and put them on top of the bowls. Not seeing anything that needed to be done anymore, I went to the bathroom to take a leak.

When I returned from the bathroom, mom was already waiting for me on the dining table. I hopped on the chair right across hers and proceeded to eat lunch. It was a fairly quiet affair, aside from the occasional questions from mom. As I looked down the direction of the hallway, I could see what looked like flowers on the couch. Curious, I asked mom about it. She wasn't the least bit surprised that I noticed. I had always been a perceptive child.

"It's for a friend," she said. I blinked. I had never known this friend. Was he or she a dear friend of mom? She wasn't talking about dad. She had brought me to his grave nearly a year ago. While I had barely felt anything but a twinge of pity, I could see that she was truly heartbroken by his death. She would never address dad as a 'friend'. She was bringing flowers, peony flowers if my sight weren't fooling me. What does peony flowers mean? I could've sworn that I had read that somewhere in a book in the library.

"Who is it?" I asked. Mom gave a small smile which had a trace of sadness in it.

"She was the one who made me to open this bakery here," said mom. This friend of mom was the reason she opened a bakery here? Right next to the Uchiha compound? Which had their own bakery shop INSIDE. I didn't mean to be rude, but that idea wasn't exactly doing us a favor right now.

Because of how close it was to the Compound and by extension, the Military Police base, not many villagers live around this part of the village, at least compared to the others. Being near the village's police force and having to live under their gaze wasn't exactly comfortable for some people. Some neighbors would come by once in a while. They were the most frequent costumers, not that it really mattered since there weren't that many to begin with. The Uchihas, as I said, had their own bakery inside the Compound. It would be logical that they would prefer the closer and the more familiar of the two.

Mom must've noticed my sour mood, because she put her hand on my shoulders and looked right into my eyes.

"How about I bring you to visit her?" she asked me, still looking at me. I wanted to say no, but I could tell that something was off with her today, and I wanted to know what it was. With a sigh, I nodded my head up and down. Mom chuckled and rubbed my messy brown hair. I didn't stop her, not really in the mood. She stood up from the dining table; her lunch finished and excused herself to clean up a bit. As soon as she stepped out of the room, I practically inhaled my lunch and went to clean up myself before going out.

A few minutes later, I was waiting for mom in front of our house. I pulled out my "Gutsy Ninja" novel and opened a random part of the book and began to read. I've read the book quite a few times already and knew the story pretty well by then. Reading the book was just something I do to pass the time.

Mom came out of the house holding the flowers from before. She seemed to have quite some trouble trying to lock the door while holding the flower. I offered to bring the flowers for her.

"Let me bring it," I said. She smiled sheepishly and gave me the flower. After locking the front door, mom led the way in front of me and I followed, curious about this friend of hers. We walked silently for a few minutes. The path we were walking seemed familiar to me. I realized a moment later that this was the path heading to the Konoha Cemetery. Did mom's friend live near the graveyard?

"Do you know what flower you are holding?" mom asked me. I blinked in surprise at the question. I knew that it was a peony flower, but I couldn't remember what they meant. I also realized that she might not be familiar with the name "Peony". Several countries in Asia called this flower by different names, I recalled

I shook my head. "No? What is it called?" I asked.

"It's called 'botan'," she said. Botan huh? I never knew that. "Do you know what it symbolizes?" asked mom once again. I tried to remember, scratching my chin in thought. It did no good though; I couldn't remember what this flower symbolizes.

"I don't know," I said to mom. She just smiled. Sometimes I wondered if that was the only thing she does.

"Botan is a flower used in some medicines. It is also used to wish the person that is given a quick recovery." So this friend of mom is sick? Then why are we heading to the cemetery? I didn't want to think that it was what I thought, but we weren't walking any closer to the hospital that's for sure, which was located much closer to the center of the village.

"Is your friend sick?" I asked.

"No, she isn't sick. But she was. She fought tooth and nail against it and kept pushing forward," she said with fondness. The way she said pretty much confirmed my suspicions. But until she said it outright or I saw it myself, I would keep an open mind. I decided to just try and bite. It wouldn't do anyone harm, after all.

"Did she…" I hesitated. I didn't finish my question. But from the look on mom's face she knew what I was going to ask. As I waited for her answer, I barely realized that we had entered the cemetery area and kept walking deeper into it.

"Yes… she didn't make it, despite her efforts." As she said this, we had arrived in front of a gravestone. It was worn. On it, a name was engraved.

Uchiha Ryuuko.

Mom took the flowers from me and proceeded to put them on the gravestone. Silently, she put her hands together and prayed. As she did this, I stood silently beside her, fidgeting uncomfortably.

"She wanted to be a florist," mom said suddenly.

"I take it, her family didn't quite agree…" Mom let out a bark of laughter at my comment.

"More than you can imagine," said mom. "She was exceptionally talented as a shinobi. But she wanted something else. We used to play in the open field looking for flowers. She didn't want to be a ninja, a murderer, a soldier... I had always wanted to be a baker since little, and so we promised each other to live our dreams. But it was as if karma struck her."

I stayed silent, which probably looked completely out of character to others, since I had a habit on commenting on things frequently. But I stayed silent, not wanting to interrupt her.

"I didn't know the details, but she had some kind of immune disorder. It had been damaging her body for quite some time. There were barely any symptoms. Her immune systems were attacking her body faster than the doctors could repair her cells…"

"They couldn't help her?" I asked. Mom shook her head.

"They said that only the First's regenerative powers could have helped her. Even Princess Tsunade had her limits," said Mom. After a while, she looked at me with a small smile on her face.

"Even though she died, I still held on to our promise. To me, promises have to be kept, even if death separates us. Haa… that sounds a bit extreme doesn't it?" she chuckled. She kneeled down next to me and brushed my messy hair.

"The point is this. Promises are a big thing. You have to keep them no matter what. Do you understand?" she asked me. I smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, I do. So… when are you going to make that sautéed broccoli that you promised me?" I asked playfully. I could see the corner of her left eye twitched. ' _Opportunistic brat,_ ' she must have thought. Not that she would ever call me a brat…

"Let's go to the market to buy some, shall we?" she said. I happily went along with her at the thought of broccoli for dinner.

* * *

A few days later, Itachi, Shisui and I were together again. We continued to practice together on our shuriken skills. Both of them were very impressed at the rate I was growing in skills.

"You're able to throw shurikens quite nicely now! I'm impressed!" said Shisui. I flashed him a victorious grin.

"That's what training everyday gives you!" I said proudly while pointing at my chest.

"I'm pretty sure even if someone were to train every day, that is not a normal growth rate," said Itachi. Even if he barely showed it, I could see that he was impressed from the small quirk of a smile on his mouth.

"How about we have a race?" suggested Shisui. Itachi and I raised our eyebrows in question.

"Why?" I asked. Shisui just shrugged.

"I just wanna see who's faster. Come on! We'll start from that tree and the finish point is that bush over there!" said Shisui, pointing at the starting and finish spots for our race. Itachi shrugged and proceeded to go to the starting point wordlessly. Once we were in position, Shisui excitedly looked at the both of us.

"All right! You guys ready?" he asked. I muttered a 'yeah' and Itachi just nodded silently. The three of us got into position to start our run. "Get set! Go!"

The three of us started running at exactly the same time. For a moment, the three of us were equally fast. And then Shisui started to take the lead and Itachi started to get in front of me. Was he getting faster or was I getting slower? We passed the bush and the three of us took a few deep breaths.

"I win!" exclaimed Shisui.

"You just wanted to show off how fast you are, didn't you?" deadpanned Itachi. Shisui laughed sheepishly. Then he noticed that I was slightly more out of breath than the two of them.

"Hey, you okay?" he asked. I nodded my head.

"Just slightly out of breath, that's all." Shisui looked at our running course, as if he wasn't convinced that this had managed to tire me out.

"Really? You got tired from this? Not that I'm mocking you, but I noticed that you had quite the stamina and could train for hours at a time," said Shisui.

"Are you stalking me?" I asked.

"No, I'm not," said Shisui. "I just caught sight of you training in the last few days."

"Sure…" I said, not convinced.

"I am not stalking you!" said a flustered Shisui.

"Okay, okay… you are not a stalker. I get it." Shisui let out a small huff of annoyance.

"Seriously though, can you try running again? Maybe there's something we missed," said Shisui. I sighed at the thought of running again but complied. As I prepared myself to run again, Itachi and Shisui were looking at me like hawks. At Shisui's mark, I started running as fast as I could to the finish mark. I let out deep huffs of breath. And Itachi suddenly had a look of realization on his face.

"You're not using chakra," he said.

"What?" asked Shisui and I. We weren't sure if we heard that right.

"You are not using chakra," Itachi repeated. "When you run, you just run. You were not running with the aid of chakra." Shisui nodded in understanding, trusting Itachi's observation.

"So… How do we fix this?" I asked. Itachi looked unsure at my question.

"I'm not sure…" said Itachi. "Usually people unconsciously use chakra in their daily life. Conditions like this are very rare or even unheard of."

"Just great…" I muttered. If this was untreatable, being a shinobi would be hard or even impossible.

"Maybe you just have to concentrate on using it, chakra I mean," said Shisui. I thought about it.

"First, I have to learn how to channel chakra in my daily activities, then maybe that would fix it," I said, clicking my fingers. Itachi still looked unsure.

"But we won't learn how to channel chakra until we're in the academy. And even my father said that he would teach me how to use chakra a few months before we join the academy," said Itachi.

I straighten myself upright, smiled at him and said "Well, then I just have to start much earlier in order to get the hang of it."

That meant a trip to the library to borrow some books.

* * *

 **Kept you waiting, huh?**

 **Sorry if I haven't updated in so long. Mid-semester tests were hell… Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain was also out. So… I've been busy lately. Gotta do more Side-Ops…**

 **That said, I also already have the entire story until the epilogue lined up nicely as a draft. I just have to write them down properly. This long wait was not for nothing after all, don't worry.**

 **Follow, favorite and review, guys and gals.**


	6. (Not) Chapter 6: Announcement

**Sorry, but this is not an update. This is mostly a long overdue announcement. I really should've made this announcement months ago. But here's the gist of it.**

 **I will not be continuing "Stuck on the Road of Life". Before any pitchforks come up, I just want to say that reading back on it, I personally think it's horrendous in terms of character and writing. That being said, I won't delete this story. I'll leave it as it is, mostly as a reminder of how I was. Reading other series for inspiration, I really have a lot of things that I want to change. But it's too much of a change, which probably warrants a rewrite instead. So, yes. Stuck on the Road of Life will be rewritten sometime in the future, most likely under a different, but similar title. Maybe not soon, but it will be rewritten. That, I can guarantee.**

 **And thank you for those who think of this story good, despite my personal opinion of it. I appreciate you following and favoriting my story, as well as the occasional reviews, despite the lack of update to it. I know I'm being unfair for leaving this story like this, but believe me when I said that I will have something to publish in the future that is Naruto. In the meantime, my heart is just isn't in it.**


	7. (Not) Chapter 7: Announcement II

**Sorry, this isn't a new chapter. This is just a small announcement to say that the first chapter of** ** _The Road of Life_** **, the rewrite to this fic, has been published.**

 **This is also a formal goodbye for this fanfic for me, as I'm finally moving on to greener pastures, making this fic as a stepping stone.**

 **Once again, thank you for all the followers and favorites, as well as reviews for this fic. If you intend to check out the rewrite, you'll be seeing more of me. If not, then I thank you for at the very least, showing your support here.**


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